Courage
by Nat King
Summary: Armin had a lot of courage and Levi discovered the reason. / A oneshot series with different themes
1. Courage

**Uh, translating a oneshot mine... English is not my native language, so I appreciate, if someone read, corrected me on possible errors, hehe xD**

 **I am a big fan of shipp Aruani and don't ask me, just go on tumblr and go crazy with so many wonderful headcanons! \o/ Levi is a character that I like a lot too, and thought it would be nice to write something with it. Anyway, is not a big thing, but I hope you enjoy!**

 **Enjoy your reading!**

* * *

Armin had courage. Don't had a strength physical or looked like a soldier, but he had courage. He had a lot of courage. Oh, damn time when Levi decided to take those brats under his wing, as if he were a paw guarding the chicks. Reluctantly, he had to admit as the rest of the 104th Trainees Squad was better than expected, however, were all young and reckless, pressing in his fervent youthful blood, the impulse.

— Move it, Arlert.

— No.

Levi thought he heard wrong. He wished he had heard wrong.

— I think you did not understand me. Move it, Arlert.

— I can't. – Levi pursed his lips, his patience leaving.

— Levi, maybe he is right... – Hanji manifested, his humor much more restrained than the normal. She always liked the little brat...

— It wasnt you, Hanji, who wanted to hurt to Female Titan or whatever you do with your guinea pigs, those – And fixing his gaze on Armin, he completed — _monsters_?

The boy's eyebrows came together in defiance and, to his luck, his messy fringe was able to neutralize your reaction. That could be only a joke... The Female Titan had finally come out of the damn crystal and Arlert decided to intervene by creating a new barrier between them and the girl. Levi waited a heroic act of any other, perhaps Connie or Sasha and his emotional appeal with former mates, but Armin? The ingenious Armin? The boy who Erwin used to place all their trust in leadership battle veterans? Levi should know that blond boy looked up too mature for his age...

— The command are above you and above me, boy.

— I know.

— So...?

Armin did not support continue looking into the eyes of Levi and turned his attention to the tip of his boots, looking like there seeking for the lost words.

— Are you questioning a higher order?

— No, I just...

— You are an enemy of humanity?

— Levi! – Hanji tried to intervene.

— You are an enemy of humanity, Armin?

— No, of course not!

— Then why are you stopping me from going? – Arlert opened his mouth, unable to utter a word. — I must conclude that if you are not with us is against us? Or just for yourself?

— It is because of humanity that I'm here. – Armin was quick to resume their arguments. — Annie was out there, Captain, she knows a lot more about beyond the walls than us. She knows because humanity is persecuted, she was sent by those who want to decimate... Losing Annie is losing hope of humanity.

 _Shit!_ The boy was really good with words... A small manipulator and good at it. Worst of all was that Armin knew how good it was in manipulate and put things in their favor, did not even think too much into it. But Levi also had some tricks up its sleeve...

— Surely the interrogation will take all the information we need.

— They are going to kill her before they can have any question.

— I can not guarantee that everyone will be polite to our guest, but no one will be stupid to the point of unusable her.

— But _I can_ guarantee that at least one person will be unable to contain their impulses. – And there it was, shining in his blue eyes, his courage. — Or you will lose the chance to avenge your mates, Captain?

 _That little shit..._

— Okay, that's enough you two. – Hanji thickened his voice, as if scolding two children.

— Think about it... All those soldiers... You know how it was, we could not take the corpses back... What if we brought, we could not recognize half, captain. You saw what she was able to do... Oh, I think you also remember what she did with his squad, right? She broke one of your soldiers in the middle, or something, right? – _Gunter..._ — One... One had a large family, right? Probably he was largely responsible for supporting parents and siblings, it's a shame... – _Oruo..._ — And the girl? Someone said me it was only daughter of a widower, or something. Poor man... – _Petra..._ — But I felt sad about the man who would marry, what's he called? – _Erd..._ — Well, I guess it does not matter anymore because he died like everyone else. I think that's why they call who joins with you like _Death Squad._ – Hange was the first to exclaim something — But it's not your fault; the fault is all of them, of the titans. Fault of organized attack against humanity. But, of course, Captain, you should know that you are professional and enough not to want to discount all your anger in Annie, even if you have the opportunity. You're better than that... It must be anesthetized for all these deaths, since it is not the first time that loses your squad.

When he saw Armin first time, Levi wondered what a boy like he was doing there. He was fragile, less developed physical structure than that of colleagues, limited manual skills and his blue eyes were so hopeful! Innocent, he would say! What were doing a kid with so many dreams and illusions about the beauty of the outside world among all those soldiers? He wanted to see the ocean, flaming water, frozen earth, plains of sand, white as snow and blah blah blah. Levi does not trust that he would survive a few hours on the battlefield, but there it was him with all his courage, his blue eyes without a shred of that innocence seen before. Manipulator Armin Arlert... He managed to fool Levi as well...

The boy seemed to take the silence of Levi as something positive, as it continued to speak.

— She will not say anything to anybody. Would you say something to the people who want to kill you? – Armin did not wait for an answer. — But maybe she says to me. We trained together for years, captain and also, I... – He hesitated. — I know she could contribute with us. Maybe Annie is our ally.

Ally? The Female Titan, which crushed many soldiers as if squashing a bug? What kind of idea he was having?!

But, wait a moment... _Annie?_ Was his impression or Armin seemed the only one there to refer to the titan shifter by name?

 _Oh..._

— And how could it, lady-killer? Seducing her with flowers and beautiful words? – A red tone took Arlert's face and, though he kept the determined expression, Levi knew the secrets hidden so deep inside in that boy, stored secrets behind his innocent eyes, his handlers eyes, his betrayers eyes...

— I-I have my methods.

— Of course you has... – Looking for a surprisingly silent Hange, Levi gave the order. — I will say to Erwin the idea to Arlert, so keep an eye on him so he do not go around preaching a titan defense, Hange. – She nodded, still stunned by the boldness of Armin. Levi was also surprised, surprised that him have not discounted all the hatred he felt over Armin's speech in the boy.

Casting a quick look at him, Levi could see again in his eyes a glimmer of hope that seen before, when he spoke on the other side of the wall, the unknown world that even so, was so beloved by Armin.

— Arlert? – His voice seemed to pull him from his hopeful ramblings, forcing him to harden the posture again. — What is your dream?

— Dream?

— Yeah, something big and almost impossible, but that we want too, you know. The dream of Hange must be an endless supply of titans – Zoe laughed. — And mine is a endless supply of tea. What is your dream, Armin?

The defiant stance had dissipated, his eyebrows furrowed before, were slightly arched, following the surprise inside. Perhaps Armin just had not realized at that moment and this amused Levi. His anger had been replaced by the sadistic fun of seeing the confusion on the boy. Oh yeah, he was young and together with the fervent youthful blood, also came the impulse.

Also it came the love.

— All right, Arlert, dreams change all the time, no need to get nervous.

Levi thought he heard a _"Yes, captain"_ , but chose to ignore, coming up the stairs. Who knew that Armin would bring problems... Armin have a crush in the female titan? Yeah, Levi had to admit, Armin had a lot of courage...

* * *

 **Thank you for reading!**


	2. Fear

**Hello again!**

 **Thank you so much for your return review in Courage! This kind of support is very important to me! I then decided to translate my other oneshots. Again, I ask your help in any grammatical error! :3**

 **Enjoy your reading!**

* * *

Anchored on the wall, he kept his eyes fixed on the door that separated him from the Annie's cell. Even though almost two feet thickness, Armin knew that no door could stop the power of a titan, let alone one of wood, but he also knew that the choice of the cell was given more by fear of the soldiers than by logic. Armin could see the fear of his comrades in the strong gag, in each welded ring especially to hold your arms and legs in large cuffs that looked like cylinders limiting movement of her fingers. Everything there smells like fear, when in reality, Annie should be the one to feel it.

Armin reached into his pocket and took out the strange Annie's ring. He still remembered when he took the object for himself and how that little silver circle accompanied him everywhere since. Armin looked at the ring as if it were receiving answers, but all he could was more and more questions, until his fixation with that ring began to provoke his mind, a whisper that probed Armin constantly ...

 _"Why do you keep that ring with you, Armin?"_

— I don't know. – It was his sincere response.

 _"Of course you know, you're not stupid."_

That voice in his mind was very rude.

— Maybe this keep a secret. – He tried to convince his voice and himself.

 _"You know there's no secret there."_

— Maybe...

 _"Maybe it's just an excuse to have something from Annie, as you can not have she with you?"_

— Shut up.

 _"Face it, Armin, you are in love with her!"_

— No!

 _"So why still hurt?"_

— Why, hell? Why still hurts ?!

There was not a person in the 104th Trainee Squad did not notice Eren and Mikasa. The girl's care with the his stepbrother was surrounded by rebuke, companionship, affection and, above all, love. Marco once remarked with Armin, as his friends were a great couple and in this he had to agree. From children, that scene always repeated and even his grandfather commented on how _"these two are still going to get married"._

Armin did not quite understand what could be love, because couples always seemed things of books and love story; in theory, it was easy to understand and he even had a list of symptoms that point the diagnosis, such as palpitations, sweating hands, slurred speech, irrational nervousness, all sorts of things that made love seem funnier than worthy of sighs and matrimonial idealizations.

Until Armin found himself in love with Annie. Love completely lost grace.

Annie was always quiet and serious. With an incredible body control, she could even bring down Berthold on the floor if she wanted, even though he was the highest of the whole team. So compressed strength and agility in their small size; Annie was so strong that appeared to have twice as many centimeters, leaving Armin feeling infinitely smaller than her, especially when they crossed the halls. He was so afraid to bother her, which struggled to find words in their sudden conversations. His hands were sweating while looking for his fair hair in the dining room and her heart quickened impressively when he finally found her. In the class, see blue eyes upon him made him uncomfortable, causing him to choke and stutter when starting to speak. Annie was really intimidating - or so Armin wanted to imagine - she really scare him.

— Annie, you're actually pretty nice, aren't you? – Armin could not explain the size of the fear he felt when he uttered those words. He felt he had blown it, even not knowing very well what it was.

So Marco's equipment was there and suddenly that scenario seemed all wrong. Again, Armin felt fear.

When things started to go so wrong? When the female Titan appeared? Why was he unable to escape it? Armin despired and when the Titan jumped over her head the only thing he could think about was Annie and how he would never see her again. Not Eren or Mikasa, but Annie. He was afraid, but it was a different fear than thought feel for Annie. Armin was afraid of never being able to see her big blue eyes again, light animation signs on your face always so stoic and her body as, well, always take his attention. And when his body hit the ground it came the thud, not the fall, but the idea:

 _"What do you feel for Annie is not afraid"_

When the troops finally withdrew to a safer place, things started to fall into place; palpitations, sweating hands, the words shuffled ... The signs were so clear! He had seen it all his life, as did not realize when it was him? No, what Armin felt for Annie certainly was not afraid, but...

And then other things fell into place and Armin felt terrified.

Was the most painful month of his life. No physical pain could compare to what was inflaming his soul. He could not believe in his thought, but Armin had refused to believe his feelings for so long! But why? Armin raised his eyes to the ceiling moldy dorm and questioned, between anger and sadness, everything; He had lost their parents, had lost his grandfather, now lost Annie?

 _"Do not be ridiculous, how can you miss what you never had?"_

The voice began to gain more strength in that time.

Arguments, discussions, clarifications. All that Armin wanted was more time in order to understand what the problem was. He wanted answers, as in his imaginary list of symptoms of love, as the study plan made for the tests... Because he was afraid, he was terrified, was being divided into so many pieces that one of these parties could have any effect.

— When did you start looking at me with those eyes?

Armin was screaming inside. He did not know, all he wanted was answers! Why had so many questions and so few answers?! Why he felt like he was going to die while there, those stairs, looking Annie for the first time in so long?!

Maybe it was fear-

 _"Oh, shut up"_

He could not say how many different feelings clashed during in the day. Annie's fall made him remember every little moment beside her, every conversation, every intense gaze, every missed opportunity. After all, Armin decided to admit.

 _"I do not feel fear."_

 _"Finally!"_

— Why you lied to me? – He whispered to the ring. No reply, as always.

He looked up again to the cell door and could see the Annie's sleeping face delivering agitation of a bad sleep. Knowing that soon she would wake up, Armin left the corridor to get a proper meal, knowing that none of the soldiers had been given the job of feeding the "enemy of humanity" again. Put the ring in his pocket, his heart racing, hands sweating, nervousness making him shiver.

How was scary feeling love.

* * *

 **Thank you for reading!**


End file.
